Louisville, Kentucky (09/03/2009-09/05/2009)

To be honest, arriving in Louisville I was almost afraid that I wouldn't have much to say after leaving given:

1) I was exhausted from running around Chicago like a madman;
2) Most of my time here would be taken up by RA's wedding; and
3) I didn't expect to see much given I'm not really into baseball or bluegrass

Fortunately, life seems to continually surprise me. Louisville was quaint, but was still a proper city; 'Southern' [yes, I know it's not in the deep south] hospitality is certainly still around and present in the most unexpected of places; and for a city I expected to be quite homogeneous and segregated (as Washington, DC certainly is), it was quite culturally diverse, and not nearly as bad as I had expected. In fact, just as I arrived they were setting up a World Fair featuring cuisine, music, and other traditional performances from 20-odd countries right next to my hotel.

Of the few things I did get to see, I most enjoyed Mohammed Ali's museum. It was quite impressive to see how he used his boxing as a platform for charity and social change - something I was quite ignorant of beforehand. This is another city I wouldn't mind returning to again.

Chicago, Illinois (09/01/2009-09/03/2009)

Chicago was another great American city that I am embarrassed to say that I had not bothered to visit until now, and only by pretext of an extended stop-over. That said, like New York City, it had a sense of familiarity and nostalgia from various references in popular culture and snippets of American history that I absorbed while growing up here in Canada.

The city also felt somewhat like the mythical Gotham City of Batman lore with its multiple street levels that get progressively darker and danker as you descend, the elevated subways, and the neo-gothic architecture of such places as the Chicago Tribune building.

The people were warm and friendly, the food was good albeit unhealthy, and the scenery and culture were both quite rich. I was also surprised at how affordable the high-end venues were when compared to similar places in Europe and Asia. One of my personal highlights was stepping inside the U-505, the first U-Boat captured during WWII now permanently stationed at the Museum of Science and Industry.

Bratislava, Slovakia (03/13/2009)

I figured a nice way to spend a Friday the 13th would be in a place that still retains a very post-communist feel - Bratislava. I was surprised at how pretty and quaint this small central European city was ... in some ways I much preferred it to Vienna. The old palaces and buildings were juxtaposed with futuristic yet slightly dilapidated sights that remind me of the Soviet-like dream (or propaganda) of a grandiose technological society while revering past culture. While I was walking around, I met an accordion-playing busker from Romania and had a talk about politics and current economics. He confirmed that Romania (and much of Eastern Europe) was really suffering due to the global downturn due to migrant workers returning East after being laid off only to find no jobs domestically. He then proceeded to ask about the job situation in Canada (hoping it would be better). Unfortunately, he had no formal education, and could not even read music, despite being able to play nearly anything he listened to with great detail and skill (since age 7). It's too bad for him, and once again reaffirms the fact that education is really a qualifier, rather than a desired attribute.

Vienna, Austria (03/12/2009-03/15/2009)

I needed a nice cultural break from 10 months of business school and several inspirational yet content-heavy days in Lyon.

I came to Vienna for three things:
1) Eating pastries and drinking melanges at numerous cafes
2) Music
3) Museums

I accomplished all three, and probably gained 5 lbs for my troubles. Highlights of my trip were seeing the Moscow Symphony Orchestra play Tchaikovsky's Manfred Symphony (rarely performed) and Myaskovsky's incredibly technical Cello Concerto in C minor, watching Lucia Di Lammermoor by Gaetano Donizetti (the aria was featured in the Fifth Element) , and meeting a great number of wonderfully interesting people. Just in my hostel alone, I roomed with 2 concert pianists and 1 orchestra conductor! I also had the great fortune to meet a cellist, a sopprano, a modern classical composer, and a violinist. Being in Vienna made me wish I had pursued music more seriously, even if I could never be a start performer due to my short stubby fingers (I could at least compose). This is one city I definitely plan on returning to in the future.